One Piece: The True Codex

The entire network of criminal forces in the slums was thrown into turmoil. Some chose to flee, while others decided to wait and see.

Dennis, fully aware of William's formidable strength, had stuck close to him ever since they entered the slums. William, for his part, didn't mind the sheriff tagging along, as he didn't want Dennis to meet an untimely end here.

To William, the criminal factions in the slums were no more than flies—numerous, but insignificant. There was no need for him to personally get involved. After all, the reason he had assembled such a crew of pirates was precisely to handle situations like this.

William led Dennis on what seemed like a leisurely tour, checking on the various squads of Morgan Pirates as they carried out their missions. By the time they arrived at each location, the battles were mostly over. The Morgan Pirates had suffered almost no casualties, and the corpses being piled up in the open spaces were all those of their enemies.

Eventually, William and Dennis arrived at the underground distillery that Yasopp and Diego had taken control of. In front of the small building housing the distillery, a group of workers sat on the ground with their hands on their heads, guarded by several Morgan Pirates. Meanwhile, other workers were being driven by Diego's men to carry out barrels of liquor from the building and pile them in the open space outside.

Yasopp paid no attention to the workers. He sat atop a stack of barrels, calmly cleaning his revolver. When he noticed William and Dennis approaching, his gaze briefly swept over the visibly nervous sheriff before returning to his gun.

A few of the workers glanced around furtively when the pirates weren't looking, only to quickly lower their heads again.

William cast a brief glance at the workers crouching on the ground before walking toward the barrels. However, as he passed by the workers, one of them—a burly man in worker's clothing with a seemingly honest face—suddenly sprang into action.

It had been mentioned before that William, when properly dressed, could easily pass as a noble. With his elegant demeanor and polished appearance, few would suspect that he was a pirate captain.

Having spent considerable time in Kalmar City recently, mingling with Arcadio and other nobles, William had taken great care to maintain his appearance. Unlike his days aboard the pirate ship, he now dressed impeccably, his suit spotless and his hair neatly slicked back.

To the casual observer, William's composed demeanor and the obvious respect shown to him by the Morgan Pirates made it natural to mistake him for a high-ranking noble with no combat ability.

If William had been alone, his calm attitude and the katana at his waist might have given a would-be attacker pause. However, with Dennis nervously glancing around and fidgeting beside him, the sheriff's unease made William appear less intimidating.

The disguised thug, seizing the opportunity, reached for his belt buckle and drew a short dagger that gleamed coldly in the dim light. With a vicious expression, he lunged at William, intending to take the noble-looking leader hostage and force this armed group—whose true nature he had yet to discern—into hesitation.

The thug planned to first wound William's shoulder to intimidate him. However, as he lunged, William merely turned his head slightly, casting a casual glance at the attacker. Then, with lightning speed, William's right hand shot out, his index and middle fingers pinching the blade of the dagger mid-strike.

The thug froze, his body trembling in shock. He had never imagined that this seemingly pampered noble would stop his attack with just two fingers.

Stunned, the thug hesitated for a moment. William, finding the situation hardly worth his effort, didn't bother to retaliate. Instead, Diego, standing nearby, had already reacted. With a flick of his left hand, he lifted the hem of his coat, revealing a belt lined with throwing knives. In a swift motion, he drew one and hurled it.

Thud! The knife struck the thug squarely in the temple, its force so great that it lifted the man's body off the ground before he collapsed in a heap.

Diego approached with a grim expression, planting a foot on the corpse as he bent down to retrieve his knife.

"Captain, this was my oversight," Diego said, lowering his head apologetically as he stood before William.

William simply nodded, not offering any reprimand.

Standing beside William, Dennis looked as though he had been struck by lightning.

Thomason's earlier deductions echoed in Dennis's mind, his thoughts slowing as if time itself had been stretched. His gaze instinctively fell on the blood-stained knife in Diego's hand.

"The bodies of the fallen guards all had small, penetrating wounds in vital areas," Thomason had said. "My preliminary conclusion is that they were caused by throwing knives..."

Dennis's eyes shifted to the thug's corpse, its temple pierced cleanly by Diego's blade.

"The user's skill is exceptional—not just precise, but powerful enough to easily penetrate skulls..."

Finally, Dennis's gaze settled on Diego's short stature.

"And I suspect the killer isn't very tall..."

A shiver ran through Dennis's body. In his increasingly dazed state, he watched as Diego casually wiped the blood from his knife with his sleeve before tucking it back into his belt.

In an instant, the image of William in Dennis's mind transformed from that of a cultured gentleman to a dangerous predator—a wolf ready to devour its prey. The smile William often wore now seemed to Dennis like the sinister grin of a beast.

The open space around them suddenly felt suffused with an invisible, suffocating tension.

Dennis's face grew pale, cold sweat dripping from his forehead. He glanced around discreetly, his paranoia painting every member of the Morgan Pirates as a potential threat. Yasopp, sitting on a barrel and cleaning his gun; Diego, overseeing the workers; William, inspecting the barrels—all seemed to know his thoughts, their every glance filled with malice, ready to silence him at any moment.

"What's wrong? You look pale," William asked, turning away from the confiscated goods to look at Dennis with a smile. "Did that scare you just now?"

Dennis pulled out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from his brow. The sight of William's smile made his heart race like a drum, and his own smile turned stiff. "N-no, not at all."

His eyes darted around, searching for an escape route. Though he couldn't be certain that William was responsible for Andre's death, the possibility alone was enough to fill him with dread.

Dennis had already witnessed the ferocity of William's crew. The local gangs in the slums were no match for them, falling one by one with ease. And Dennis was all too familiar with the condition of Andre's corpse.

If it truly was William's men who had killed Andre, then this group wasn't just powerful—they were ruthless. All Dennis wanted now was to get as far away from them as possible. He had no intention of reporting them or attempting to apprehend them.

No one in the kingdom could stand against William and his crew. Reporting to the Marines was the only option, but even then, it would take time for them to respond. In that time, William could kill Dennis countless times over.

Forcing himself to suppress his panic, Dennis casually moved toward the edge of the open space. However, before he could take another step, William, without even turning around, said, "This isn't the noble district. Don't wander off. I can't guarantee your safety."

To Dennis, William's words were ambiguous, teetering between a simple warning and a veiled threat.

Dennis glanced at William's back, then at Yasopp cleaning his gun and Diego watching the workers. Finally, he looked at the nearby street corner, so close yet so far, and hesitated.

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